Manning's Conyers, Stevensn brothers selected to Region 7-AA All-Region teams

          Manning – Justin Johnson was very pleased with the results of his second season as the head coach of the Manning High School girls basketball team.

           “We’ve made major strides in the right direction,” said Johnson, who guided the Monarchs to a 9-17 overall record and a 3-9 mark in Region 7-AA.

           Johnson is basing that analysis on the fact Manning went 5-18 overall and won only of 12 region contests in his first season.

           After finishing in last place in the 7-team region last year, the Monarchs finished tied for fifth with East Clarendon this year. They were close to earning a much better region mark as they lost five games by nine points or less.

           The Monarchs also played a difficult non-region schedule, which Johnson said was intentional.

           “We put together a tougher non-region schedule with the bulk of our games being against AAAA and AAAAA teams,” he said.

           The AAAAA teams Manning took on were Socastee, Myrtle Beach and St. James, while the AAAA teams were Crestwood and Hartsville.

           Manning earned a berth in the AA state playoffs as an at-large team. That led to them having to go on the road to face undefeated Region 7 champion Atlantic Collegiate Academy in the first round.

           The Monarchs had faced Atlantic Collegiate in the regular-season finale on February 12, losing 52-46. In the first-round rematch on February 17, the Armada won 77-39.

           Atlantic Collegiate ended up winning the Lower State title before falling to Landrum in the AA state championship contest.

           Manning was led by freshman center Ameerah Conyers, who was named to the All-Region team. She averaged a double-double on the season, scoring at 15.3 points per game and pulling down 15.4 rebounds.

           Johnson said Conyers made steady progress as a player throughout the season.

           “Ameerah grew as the season progressed,” he said. “She was a defensive anchor for us this season and a consistent offensive paint presence. For a freshman, she’s got tremendous upside.”

           Along with being a force on the boards, Conyers was a shot-blocking machine. Conyers averaged 5.2 blocked shots a game.

           Manning only had two seniors on the roster in Tamia Watson and Aniyah James. There were four juniors and a whopping six freshmen.

           “We chose to go with a younger roster, and we feel that will pay dividends for years to come,” Johnson said.

           Manning will miss Watson though. She was the second leading scorer with a 9.8 average. She also grabbed 6.8 rebounds.

           The Monarchs do have a player returning who averaged 9.8 points though in junior A Aysia Moore. Another junior who will be back is Taniya Johnson. She averaged 8.0 points and 6.1 rebounds while handing out a team high 3.6 assists.

           Several players saw minutes, playing in a large number of games, including James. Others were freshman Unique Calhoun, junior Nilah Brown, freshman Shamiyah Conyers, freshman A’Zaria Severance and junior Kelis Pressley.

STEVENSON BROTHERS BOYS ALL-REGION

           Brothers Lovell Stevenson and Lovon Stevenson were selected to the All-Region boys basketball team. They both are juniors.

           Lovon was chosen as the fifth best player in the region by the seven region coaches. Lovon averaged 13.5 points while pulling down 7.1 rebounds.

           Lovell had an outstanding season, averaging a double-double. He scored at a 15.1 clip while grabbing 12.4 rebounds. He also averaged 2.1 blocked shots, 2.8 assists and 2.9 steals. He led Manning in each of those categories.

           The Monarchs had three players receive honorable mention accolades. They were junior Jordyn Thompson, junior Daniel Robinson and senior Jordan Hayward.

           Hayward was the third leading scorer with a 7.7 average to go with 4.0 rebounds. Robinson averaged 6.7 points and 5.0 rebounds, while Thompson averaged 5.9 points and 4.5 rebounds.

           Manning finished the season with a 13-13 overall record. The Monarchs were 7-5 in region play which was good for fourth place. Mullins won the region with an 11-1 record while Atlantic Collegiate and Marion finished tied for second with 8-4 records.

           Manning had to go on the road for the first round of the state playoffs. It lost to Central 91-69.

           The other seniors on the team along with Hayward were Jaden Smith, Kaylin Weeks, Keindre Woods and Trey Beaufort.

WHITE QUALIFIES FOR AA WRESTLING STATE MEET

Sophomore Joshua White qualified for the AA-Class A wrestling individual state meet for the second consecutive season.

After reaching the individuals in the 126-pound weight class last year, White did so at 132 this season. He finished fifth in the Lower State qualifier, and the top eight finishers move on to state.

White defeated Jah’mir Wright of Edisto to take fifth place.

Monarch head coach Richard Schneider said White did his best wrestling at the end of the season,

“It was really an up-and-down season for him,” Schneider said of White. “He managed to correct some issues and refocus when it mattered the most to get to be a returning state qualifier. It was a rocky road for him to get back.”

           With White being the only Monarch to qualify for state among Manning’s nine wrestlers, Schneider admits there was some disappointment. However, he thinks that might spur the program to new heights.

           “I think we didn’t live up to our potential,” he said. “We’ve got a lot of wrestlers who are hungry to come back and make up for their shortcomings this year. I think they’re fired up and ready to keep pushing.

“We’re returning pretty much everybody except for just one senior. I think the future is pretty bright.”